1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a box for packaging and marketing drugs which is purposely provided with means to impede opening of the box by a child or infant.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art is replete with devices on boxes to render them child-proof or difficult to operate and open to preclude inadvertent removal of a drug which may be harmful if swallowed by an infant. Examples of such boxes may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,782,584; 3,888,350; 3,942,630; 4,126,224; and 4,844,284.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,782,584 describes a sliding lid, safety pill box with out-turned wing portions which prevent opening of the box until pressed inward. This patent is exemplary of one well known method for providing a safety latch in such boxes. Detents are depressed inwardly so the cover can be slid relative to a tray. The detents are depressed directly rather than the sides or top of the box being pressed
U.S. Pat. No. 3,888,350 pertains to a safety box with a sliding lid which is released when the sides of the box are squeezed together. This patent is exemplary of the socalled "side-squeeze" constructions. Squeezing the sides bows the cover so that a cam or locking detent on the interior of the cover can be overridden by the upper edge of the tray which is normally disposed between the back or depending surface of the cover and the most forward portion of the cam.
The following patents disclose a box which is opened by applying a force downwardly on the cover to override a detent tab lock:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,630 is directed to a sliding cover safety box which is released for opening by pressing down on the cover prior to sliding it open.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,126,224 shows a sliding lid, child resistant pill box which is opened by pressing down on the lid and sliding it back.
Both of these patents illustrate constructions wherein by pressing down on the cover a detent tab lock is overridden in an axial, rather than lateral direction. In other words, the cover is flared over and around the detent lock on a tray so that the two can be separated by sliding them apart.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,844,284 is directed to a child resistant box with a sliding lid, the body of the box having two locking tabs which engage recesses in the sidewalls of the top of the box. The locking tabs are released by pressing down onto the box lid causing the sides to flare outward and the sides of the recesses out of engagement with the locking lugs. The detent lugs are also substantially tetrahedron in shape so that upon closing of the box, a cam surface is provided on the lugs, i.e., the rear triangular surface of each lug, enabling the lock to be put back in place by overriding the rail back into the recess when the box is closed. Additionally, an abutment adjacent the front end of the tray is provided for impeding inward deflection of the top wall of the cover member adjacent the front wall of the tray to make it more difficult for an infant or child to release the latching members and open the tray by biting down on the package at the front end thereof.